TAKE

Description

Use this function to extract a specified number of rows or columns from the beginning or end of a range or array.

Syntax

TAKE(array, rows, [columns])

Inputs

This function accepts the following argument:

Name	Required	Description	Valid Input
`array`	Yes	The range or array to extract from.	A cell, a cell range, a dynamic array or a formula which results in any of these.
`rows`	Yes	Number of rows to extract. Positive for top rows, negative for bottom rows.	An integer, a reference to a cell containing an integer, or a formula which results in either of these.
`[columns]`	No	Number of columns to extract. Positive for left columns, negative for right columns.	An integer, a reference to a cell containing an integer, or a formula which results in either of these.

Examples

Sample data

	A	B	C	D
1	Name	Age	City	Salary
2	John	35	New York	75000
3	John	35	New York	75000
4	Alice	28	Chicago	65000
5	Bob	42	San Francisco	85000

Sample formulas

Use case Formula Result

Extract the first two rows from a data set.

=TAKE(A1:D5, 2)

This formula creates a new data set containing the first two rows from the source data set. For this data set the formula would return the following:

Name	Age	City	Salary
John	35	New York	75000

Extract the last two rows from a data set.

=TAKE(A1:D5, -2)

This formula creates a new data set containing the last two rows from the source data set. For this data set the formula would return the following:

Alice	28	Chicago	65000
Bob	42	San Francisco	85000

Extract the first two rows and the first two columns from a data set.

=TAKE(A1:D5, 2, 2)

This formula creates a new data set containing the first two rows and the first two columns from the source data set. For this data set the formula would return the following:

Name	Age
John	35

Extract the first two rows and the last two columns from a data set.

=TAKE(A1:D5, 2, -2)

This formula creates a new data set containing the first two rows and the last two columns from the source data set. For this data set the formula would return the following:

City	Salary
New York	75000

Extract the first three UNIQUE rows from the dataset.
Note: If there are fewer unique rows than the specified number, then all the unique rows are returned.

=TAKE(UNIQUE(A1:D5), 3)

This formula creates a new data set containing the first two UNIQUE rows from the source data set. For this data set the formula would return the following:

Name	Age	City	Salary
John	35	New York	75000
Alice	28	Chicago	65000

Notes

As with all array functions, TAKE dynamically populates results across adjacent cells, starting from the cell containing the TAKE function.
TAKE:
- Extracts rows or columns from start or end of array.
- Supports positive (start) and negative (end) row/column selection.
- Can extract both rows and columns simultaneously.

Tips

If you have header row(s), start your array values one row down (for example in the data set above, start with A2 rather than A1) if you don't want the headers to be included.
TAKE can be combined with:
- FILTER: To extract top/bottom rows after filtering.
- SORT: To extract rows after sorting data.
- UNIQUE: To extract unique rows or columns. This is useful for:
  - Removing duplicates.
  - Sampling distinct data points.
  - Analyzing unique records.
- SEQUENCE: To extract a sequence.

Related functions

Here are the other array formula functions supported in Workiva spreadsheets.

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